


Eating Habits (Or Lack Thereof)

by Worlds_Okayest_Speedster



Series: 50 Shades of Grayson [7]
Category: Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Eating Disorders, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-03
Updated: 2018-10-03
Packaged: 2019-07-24 10:47:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16173524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Worlds_Okayest_Speedster/pseuds/Worlds_Okayest_Speedster





	Eating Habits (Or Lack Thereof)

“Wally, are you sure you don’t want anything else to eat?  You’ve hardly touched your dinner… Did you not like it?” Iris asked, looking at her niece with concern.  Lately, she had noticed Wally wasn’t eating as much as she should be for her age. She was still growing and yet she hardly ate whatever was given.  Tonight was no exception. Iris had made what she thought was Wally’s favorite, but the 8 year old had eaten so little it was hard to tell if she actually ate anything at all.  Wally blinked wide green eyes at her aunt, looking confused at the questions.

 

“No, I liked it, Aunt Iris.  I’m just not really hungry,” Wally said, using the same excuse she always used when asked if she wanted anything to eat.  It worried Iris. It seemed she was never hungry. Wally was already small for her age, and easily underweight if the fact that Iris could pick her up with ease still was any indication.  “May I be excused?”

 

“Of course, honey.  If you want more to eat later, don’t be afraid to ask, okay?”  Wally nodded and slid off her seat, hurrying into the living room and turning on the TV.  Iris sighed and looked at Barry, worry evident on her face. “Barry, she’s not eating.”

 

“I noticed.  You and I both know she won’t ask for more to eat later, either.”  Iris sighed and nodded, glancing over at where Wally was sitting in front of the TV.  “Unfortunately, she won’t tell us why she’s not eating. She’s afraid of punishment. And not from us.”

 

“I know, you’re right.  I just don’t know how to approach something like this…”  Barry hummed in thought, looking over at Wally thoughtfully.

 

“...I have an idea I want to try, but I’m not sure if it’ll work,” Barry said, getting to his feet and walking over to the cabinets, digging through them before pulling out a pack of Oreos.  Iris watched as he made his way over to Wally, using the fact that she was distracted to set the Oreos down on the coffee table near her and quickly walk away before she noticed him. The two watched her carefully, Wally looking over at the coffee table and finally noticing the cookies.

 

“...”  She reached out and grabbed the Oreo pack, opening it and taking a few cookies out.  Hesitantly, she raised one of the cookies and took a bite out of it, stopping and tensing as if waiting for something to happen.  When it didn’t happen, she continued to eat, occasionally stopping and tensing.

 

“She’s actually eating…” Iris muttered softly, looking relieved.  Her relief, however, was short lived. Wally tensed at the sound of her voice, shoving her half eaten cookie back into the package and pushing the package away from her.  She curled up in a ball, going back to watching TV and no longer wanting to touch the Oreo package. Iris sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat. Barry frowned worriedly, walking over and kneeling down next to Wally, offering the Oreos again.

 

“Here, Wally.  You can have some more, you don’t have to stop eating them.”  Wally shook her head, hands clamped over her mouth as she edged away from her uncle, fear evident on her face.  Barry sighed softly, setting the cookies down and reaching out, gently pulling Wally’s hands away from her mouth.  “Wally, honey, you need to eat. Can you tell me why you’re not eating?”

 

“.....”  Wally didn’t respond, trembling and trying to edge further away from her uncle.  Barry let her go, leaving the Oreo package there for her just in case she went after it again.  She didn’t reach for it again for the rest of the night.

 

It came as a surprise to Barry when Wally, after finding out she had gained speedster powers from her accident, was eating.  A lot. He was proud of her for finally eating more, seeing as she was still so small for her age and could easily be lifted.  However, that pride was soon replaced by worry and concern.

 

“Wally, I know you need to eat a lot now, but you’re overdoing it.  You’re just making yourself sick over and over again,” Barry sighed, gently guiding Wally away from the kitchen and towards the bathroom before she threw up all over the floor again.  “Try to slow down, alright, kid?” She nodded, not trusting herself to speak at the moment.

 

She tried her best to regulate herself, but she only knew two extremes: eating too much or not eating at all.  She flipped between the two and it worried him. How thin she was combined with the new bruises and marks appearing on her skin only increased his worry, but there was still not much he could do.

 

He could only hope that things would get better with a little effort.


End file.
